Power Windows [Original recording reissued, Original recording remastered]

Rush | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 3, 1997)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Original recording reissued, Original recording remastered
• Label: Island / Mercury
• ASIN: B000001ESX
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (166 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,198 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #13 in Music > Hard Rock & Metal > Progressive Metal
  • #38 in Music > Rock > Progressive > Progressive Rock
  • #57 in Music > Classic Rock > Arena Rock

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

32 of 36 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Powerful and Flawless, July 30, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Power Windows (Audio CD)

This is Rush at perhaps their most powerful, both musically and lyrically. This is a trend that would continue into Hold Your Fire. However, unlike that album, this one rocks much more.

Power Windows is an even more radical departure from Grace Under Pressure as Signals was from Moving Pictures.

The keyboards on this album sound beautiful and add so much texture. From the sweeping symphonies of Manhattan Project to the majestic chorus' of Marathon this album packs a powerful punch.

The rhythm section here is at it's tightest ever. Neil turns in some of the most complex and powerful drumming of all time and Alex's guitars are at their emotional peak...just listen to the heartfelt solo in Marathon. This album also marks the first use of overdubbed chorus' by Lee...something that will dramatically increase over the next few releases.

Again, there is a theme to this album...this time it's power. Power in money (Big Money), talk (Grand Designs), weapons (Manhattan Project), persistance (Marathon), world domination (Territories), dreams (Middletown Dreams), emotions (Emotion Detector) and the unknown (Mystic Rhythms).

This album ranks among the best Rush albums ever. The music ties in with the lyrics and the lyrics tie in with an overall theme...a masterful work that should not be overlooked.

18 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Girl Shares Her Opinion, August 9, 2005

By 

Weezee - See all my reviews

This review is from: Power Windows (Audio CD)

I had never heard of RUSH until the "The Big Money" came on the radio one night in the fall of 1985. It immediately caught my attention. I remember thinking that the song sounded so... "BIG"! Sorry, no pun intended. The sound was aggressive yet melodic and (it seemed to me) a little over the top. But I immediately decided that I liked it. It was like nothing I had ever heard before. Soon afterwards I learned that it was just three guys making all of that music! I was impressed. I purchased the album and loved it. I have since looked forward to all RUSH album releases. They are outstanding musicians.

27 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Against the Run of the Mill, February 22, 2002

By 

Ramon Varela "pcrossland" (Panama City, Panama) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Power Windows (Audio CD)

Throughout the 1970's, bassist / vocalist Geddy Lee, guitarist Alex Lifeson and drummer Neil Peart built a reputation on their live performances and technical fluorishes. But things change, people grow and our love sometimes shifts focus, if not object. And as their careers progressed, their love for creating music began to focus on the writing rather than the performing. So by 1982, the 10-minute epics had given way to tighter, more focused, yet equally challenging pieces. That the songs had become more melodic was a useful byproduct of the shift in focus. However, this era in Rushtory, which began with 1980's "Permanent Waves," has endured countless criticism from snotty rock journalists, who would apparently seem content to listen to recorded verses of sublime literature recited over two dissonant chords played alternately over and over again. Much of the criticism has even come from Rush's own fans.

The pinnacle of Rush's output during this era was 1985's "Power Windows," which, not too surprisingly, has (unfairly) become the whipping boy for Rush's 1980's oeuvre. Always one to touch on powerful subjects, Peart (who is also the band's lyricist and one of rock's finest at that) devoted the entire album to dwelling on the subject of power and its many manifestations. Peart takes his lyric writing seriously, and with good reason. When the music is this good, you better have something meaningful to say to back it up.

The production duties were co-handled by the band and Peter Collins, beginning a fruitful relationship that (so far) has yielded 4 albums. The sound quality is superlative. The music lacks the raw aggression found in their earlier albums, but it more than makes up for it in the subtle, layered and intricate arrangements that include bass, guitars, drums, electronic percussion, bongos, keyboards, strings and a moving choir effect (at the end of the soaring "Marathon").

Particularly noteworthy among the songs are "Emotion Detector," (dealing with the way in which emotions can alternately make us powerful and frail); "Grand Designs" (a highly elegant way to say "stick to your guns!"); and "Territories," in which Peart touched on the subject of globalization years before the term became fashionable. The opener (and first single), "The Big Money," the title of which was Peart's homage to Dos Pasos, is a deceivingly catchy song that provides a blistering commentary on its subject matter.

Now, having made much of Rush's emphasis on songwriting, let me remind all you kiddies that these guys can play! "Power Windows" found them all at the top of their game: their technical abilities were at their peak and all three members matched them with brilliant writing, excellent production and lyrical meaning light years ahead of their musical peers. The result was "Power Windows," which, in my opinion, along with "Hemispheres" and "Moving Pictures," stands as Rush's best album.